Russellville’s proposal to locate a new veterans home within the city has been rejected.

Cissy Rucker, director of the Arkansas Department of Veterans Affairs, told the Arkansas Veterans Home Task Force on Thursday that proposed sites in Fort Smith, Russellville and Jacksonville, which the task force visited last month, did not meet federal requirements for the facility.

Locations in Russellville and Jacksonville were rejected because they are located in industrial zones. A site in Fort Smith at Chaffee Crossing was considered too close to the state’s only veterans home in Fayetteville.

Rucker said a second round of proposals will be sought. Russellville Mayor Bill Eaton did not return a call Friday to inquire whether the city anticipates submitting a new proposal. Eaton did tell aldermen earlier this week he and representatives from the Arkansas Alliance for Economic Development (AVAED) were considering alternative site locations.

Russellville city officials were informed last month it was one of four finalists chosen for the proposed veterans center. Of those four sites, only a location in Haskell is still under consideration, although Jacksonville has submitted four alternative locations.

Rucker said her agency is working with the state Department of Economic Development and plans to solicit a second round of proposals for locating the veterans home. This time, the requirements, which are very specific and detailed, are patterned after federal guidelines as well as the process used by the state of Nebraska recently when it sought a location for its veterans home.

Rucker said she expects the new requirements to be sent out next week. Cities and counties wishing to submit a proposal will have until Nov. 15 to do so, she said.

The old veterans home in Little Rock was closed last year after failing building and health inspections. The state Legislature created the task force during this year’s legislative session, along with approving $7.5 million in funding. The state has obtained $14 million in federal matching funds.